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re: Is Springsteen the ultimate “you had to be there” musician?
Posted on 5/27/22 at 10:18 am to PJinAtl
Posted on 5/27/22 at 10:18 am to PJinAtl
I was there(Born in the USA came out when I was 13 or 14) and I've still always hated his music. I'll never understand his popularity...especially outside of New Jersey.
2
Posted on 5/27/22 at 1:13 pm to RogerTheShrubber
You get your money's worth at a Springsteen show.I've been to three of them and he gets out there and puts on a 3.5 hour show and will interact with his audience. He has a devoted following because he respects his audience.
He may not be the best singer, but as a songwriter, he really has few peers. His best stuff is before Born in the USA though. The title track though suffers from that triumphal sound. Listen to it with just Springsteen and a guitar and the mood changes and you understand where he's coming from. After that most of his albums are hit and miss, except for Magic where I thought he captured the sound that put him on the map.
I really don't get the hate/ derision of him especially amongst Southerners. Change the sound up, keep the lyrics and in some cases you have country songs. Nebraska is about as Americana/Country an album as you will find.
He may not be the best singer, but as a songwriter, he really has few peers. His best stuff is before Born in the USA though. The title track though suffers from that triumphal sound. Listen to it with just Springsteen and a guitar and the mood changes and you understand where he's coming from. After that most of his albums are hit and miss, except for Magic where I thought he captured the sound that put him on the map.
I really don't get the hate/ derision of him especially amongst Southerners. Change the sound up, keep the lyrics and in some cases you have country songs. Nebraska is about as Americana/Country an album as you will find.
Posted on 5/27/22 at 2:42 pm to KiwiHead
quote:
Change the sound up, keep the lyrics and in some cases you have country songs.
Country music isn't a genre, it's a production technique.
quote:
The title track though suffers from that triumphal sound
Because it's meant to be ironic. The song was comparing American rhetoric about being the best and most free nation in the world alongside stories of struggle that Bruce thought was absolutely unacceptable for a nation trying to claim that title.
I get that and still hate that song. It's just not very interesting and goes nowhere. The lyrics are pretty vivid, but it's definitely a prime example of Bruce having left his creative peak behind him.
Posted on 5/27/22 at 3:27 pm to sorantable
quote:
I’ve tried so many times to get into his music, and just haven’t been able to.
People who love him really love him, and I’m wondering if it’s just a thing where you had to be there during his hey-day, experiencing it as it happened to really appreciate it.
Then again, maybe he’s just really overrated.
Despite his crazy political beliefs, there's still certain songs of his that I love. "Born to Run" and "My Hometown" are 2 good examples.
Posted on 5/27/22 at 4:26 pm to jdd48
I am a little young (43) for his target demo but he is just fantastic.
When I was a kid I wanted to change my name to Bruce.
Was always a fan of his stuff but saw him on The Rising tour in 2002. In Birmingham on a random Tuesday night in November. Place was probably 2/3rds full as Alabama isn’t the biggest place for Springsteen fans.
Dude could have mailed it in but he blew the roof off the place for 3+ hours.
When I was a kid I wanted to change my name to Bruce.
Was always a fan of his stuff but saw him on The Rising tour in 2002. In Birmingham on a random Tuesday night in November. Place was probably 2/3rds full as Alabama isn’t the biggest place for Springsteen fans.
Dude could have mailed it in but he blew the roof off the place for 3+ hours.
Posted on 5/27/22 at 6:00 pm to DaleGribble
quote:
I was there(Born in the USA came out when I was 13 or 14) and I've still always hated his music. I'll never understand his popularity...especially outside of New Jersey.
That was me. And also with songs off The River or any other hit on classic rock stations. I could never give him an honest listen so I never even bothered with Tunnel of Love. Then a buddy put in Nebraska and it opened me up to him some. Then some time later Streets of Philadelphia was released I actually thought it was great and still do think it's a great song. Then Ghost of Tom Joad was released and that is a superb album and caused me to go back and reassess ol Bruce.
Maybe I've matured some and along with his music too. So I guess I'm saying I'm the oddball that only likes Bruce's music post Born in the USA. Good Stuff.
Posted on 5/27/22 at 6:44 pm to kingbob
Like I said, the acoustic version conveys the sentiment better....that being said, it's probably the weakest song on the album. Most protest songs are weak imo.
Overall Born to Run and Darkness on the Edge of Town is his best work
Overall Born to Run and Darkness on the Edge of Town is his best work
Posted on 5/27/22 at 7:00 pm to sorantable
quote:
maybe he’s just really overrated
The most brain dead, commonly held belief on this board. Even worse than The Eagles Suck silliness.
The truth is that early Springsteen was very, very good. I stopped listening to him many decades ago when he got popular, and less good. But I'll never be part of the "Springsteen Sucks" crowd of morons with no sense of perspective.
Posted on 5/27/22 at 10:29 pm to Tigris
quote:
But I'll never be part of the "Springsteen Sucks" crowd of morons with no sense of perspective.
If thinking that his pandering bullshite with the lame backing band makes me a moron, I'll take it. If I have to listen to someone from New Jersey, it'd be Sinatra. Not this dick head or Bon Freaking Jovi.
Posted on 5/28/22 at 1:21 am to kingbob
quote:
Country music isn't a genre, it's a production technique.
Now do Rap and 21st Century music in all genres.
Country music most certainly WAS a genre. It might not be any more but what is? Everything sounds like it was recorded by the same shitty producer.
Posted on 5/28/22 at 9:05 am to DaleGribble
quote:
I was there(Born in the USA came out when I was 13 or 14)
No you really weren't "there". Go back to 1975 and then you are "there".
Posted on 5/28/22 at 9:13 am to Tigris
quote:
No you really weren't "there". Go back to 1975 and then you are "there".
I was 5 and remember songs/artists from earlier than 75, so technically "there".
Posted on 5/28/22 at 10:51 am to sorantable
quote:
I’m wondering if it’s just a thing where you had to be there during his hey-day, experiencing it as it happened to really appreciate it.
Though I've already responded in general, I haven't specifically -- yes, you probably had to be there during the Springsteen break-out explosion (that peak was arguably between 1975-1980)
However, vintage Springsteen can still be appreciated in the timeless spirit it imparted; Like most older music that wasn't part of your growing up, you've got to adjust and open your state of mind to that past era of America when anything in life was possible and politics wasn't sucking the life out of everyone.
Bruuuuce was hyped more than anyone since the Beatles in late 1975 when Born To Run dropped. AND...he actually lived up to it.
Even before 'Born To Run' album, its producer Jon Landau wrote in Rolling Stone mag, "I saw my rock and roll past flash before my eyes. I saw something else: I saw rock and roll's future and its name is Bruce Springsteen."
Posted on 5/28/22 at 11:02 am to sorantable
Eddie and The Cruisers did it better.
I keed, I keed.
I keed, I keed.
Posted on 5/28/22 at 11:13 am to Ace Midnight
quote:
There are a couple of great songs in there, IMHO. Also, he had a great band.
But, for my money, I also connected better with guys who came after, Bob Seger, John (Cougar) Mellencamp, Tom Petty, who all did that sort of thing, better, IMHO.
Even Billy Joel might be broadly in that same category (and had a helluva band, too) and had better songs during that era.
All those guys were great. Springsteen's experiences were a Jersey perspective. Seger (Detroit), Mellencamp (Indiana), Petty (Fla/LA), and Joel (Long Island, NY). I was from Jersey but I related to all of them as well.
Billy Joel -- that guy's band was great and he did have a spectacular run (then suddenly got burnt out after Glass Houses (one of the best LPs of all time IMO)
quote:
For folks who "got" Bruce, they were very devoted. Sort of like fans of The Clash (The only band that matters.).
Devoted because he and his band connected with their audience like no other...EVER (he's created 3 generation of audiences) Who else rewards them with 3 hour shows 40 years later? The guy is a freak. (fwiw, I despise the guy now)
The Clash (and their fans)....devoted, yes. But then there were so many "devoted" legions of fans for so many bands back then. Those guys' garage-punk sound was refreshing at the time; Inconsistent and too rough around the edges -- which I guess was (like the Ramones) part of their charm.
Pretty cool:
The Clash - London Calling/ Train In The Vain (Live On Fridays)
Posted on 5/28/22 at 11:32 am to BabysArmHoldingApple
quote:
The transition from the outro of Incident on 57th Street directly into the opening of Rosalita is pure magic on vinyl.
Oh man. Wasn't it? Good reminder.That outro and piano fade lulled you into bliss...then suddenly awakened by that awesome Rosalita intro (a Top 5 all-time Intro IMO)
quote:
I would include Darkness on the Edge of Town in the discussion. Granted, hearing Promised Land, Badlands and Prove it All Night as a 15 year old looking ahead to adulthood is probably why that album is so special to me. If you didn't have that experience, it definitely wouldn't have the same impact.
Those three specific cuts were my favorites off that album. Hear ya on the "looking ahead to adulthood" primer of sorts; I was a bit older, but the impact was still the same. 'Darkness' seemed to me unexpectedly more overcast and cynical then BTR.
quote:
The concerts were high-energy marathons. It is also hard to overstate the impact of Clarence Clemons, especially on the live performances after BTR.
Yeah, amazing. That band sure gave you your money's worth. My last Springsteen concert: Took my son to see The E St Band and Big Man for his first/only time back in 2007 (?) Giants Stadium, ground level. Looked up around us and the visuals and vibe was mind-blowing. Seats ($300 tix) were unexpectedly so awesome that we could see the band's facial expressions. By then Clemons' most utilized "instrument" wasn't his usual sax, it was...banging on his wallet.
Still, yes, his enthusiasm and exuberance was contagious. As you note, Springsteen's outspokenness on politics is a yuge source of negativity. He's become such a insufferable Commie hypocrite that I wouldn't watch him today -- even if the tix were free AND front row. Shame.
Posted on 5/28/22 at 11:36 am to Telecaster
quote:
A long forgotten writer in Creem Magazine described Springsteen’s vocals as sounding like a “Bellowing moose stuck in the mud”.
HA! Nice knife-twist.
Obviously a pun from the lyrics of Rosalita but also given his earlier album lyrics that repeatedly seemed to mention "mud" and "dirt".
Posted on 5/28/22 at 11:54 am to DaleGribble
quote:
Now do Rap and 21st Century music (production technique) in all genres.
quote:
Everything sounds like it was recorded by the same shitty producer.
At least Country (which I was never into) has chord progressions, harmonies, and music structure that can be augmented on and can be upbeat, downbeat, or whatever....AND at least can also be sung along with or played with a simple acoustic.
Rap?!??
What "production" is involved in producing it?
It's never really been a genre of "music". That is insulting the definition of "music". What it is, is obtrusive one-note monologues, pulsating beats & rhythms that assault and mug every one of the senses.
Motown and Sounds of Philly turn in their respective graves.
Posted on 5/28/22 at 1:09 pm to Telecaster
quote:
I saw him in 1985 while he was touring supporting the Born in the USA album. Dude put on a helluva show. He really works a crowd.
Same here. I saw him in 1985 at RFK Stadium. Had a blast.
Posted on 5/28/22 at 1:32 pm to DaleGribble
quote:
Country music most certainly WAS a genre. It might not be any more but what is? Everything sounds like it was recorded by the same shitty producer.
What I mean by that is you can take the same lyrics and chord progressions and through production, that song could be a country song, a rock song, a pop punk song, etc. What causes your brain to distinguish a given song as “country” verses “rock” is mostly based on using certain instruments layered in certain ways, even if the exact same notes are being played.
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